Expert blasts South Sudan’s peace partners over “theatrical meetings”

Juba, December 31, 2018 (SSNA) — South Sudan’s main peace partners, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-In Opposition (SPLM-IO) and the government have signed an agreement that will either end up failing or only serve the regime’s interests, a South Sudanese legal expert with strong ties to the established National Constitutional Amendment Committee told the South Sudan News Agency (SSNA) on Monday.

The official, who demanded his name be submerged because of the sensitively of the matter and for fear of reprisal, claims that parties to the Khartoum’s peace agreement are just busy conducting needless conferences, accusing the main peace partners of acting being too ‘theatrical’.

“It is almost four months since the agreement was signed and there is not a single advance made about its implementation, just many theatrical meetings with no tangible results. If you attend these meetings, you would agree with me that the government and SPLM-IO are just very good at talking with no muscles needed to advance the peace,” the expert explains.

“Maybe they are ready for trust-building, not peace implementation,” the source continues.

When asked to explain why he thinks the peace partners are not serious about peace implementation, the expert responded by attacking the agreement, claiming the deal was set-up to accommodate people and that the pact still maintains the current constitution which he believes is one of the mains problems destroying the country.

“The reality is that even if the peace is implemented today, the same dictatorial constitution would still be the law of the land, allowing South Sudanese President Salva Kiir to continue ruling by decree. I do not know why this was allowed in the first place. The current constitution deserves to be amended before the future transitional government is formed,” he complains.

The expert also disclosed to the SSNA that the government has “a long list of strategies” to be used to either keep the current constitution or cause the pact to collapse. He, however, declined to clarify what he means about government’s long list of plans.

The South Sudan News Agency has also learned that the constitutional amendment committee is frustrated with how its work is technically sanctioned by the pact until 16 weeks after the proposed transitional government is formed.

It is the desire of every South Sudanese to have peace. If these contestations, we need to dialogue and arrive to possible solutions on consensus. The current agreement is build on flaws from day one and it will not hold if additional efforts are not put it to allow parties dialogue and debate on the future of the country

Any move toward peace is a positive one… like the said expert has mentioned “trust building” which is far more important for the formation of a successful government.. so, i am grateful that the gv’t and the oppositions are doing more workshops purposely for trustbuilding and other positive things toward peace and the formation of the would be gv’t of national unity.